Wringer



G. E. ANDRE WRINGER Jan. 1, 1924 v 1,479,491

Filed April 2, 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 fnvenlor' Gus LafEflndre Jan. 1, 9I 1,479,491

G. E. ANDRE WRINGER Filed April 2 1921 I '2 Sheets-Sheet. Z

% l- Q) M o 0 Q) N o Q R Fyni Inventor Patented Jan. 1, 1924..

GUSTAF E. ANDRE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

WRINGER.

Application filed April 2, 1921. Serial No. 457,878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GUSTAF E. ANDRE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in-Wringers, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, concise, and exact description.

My invention relates to clothes wringers and has a number of objects andadvantages in view.

In accordance with one characteristic of my invention a drain board isemployed which is automatically adjustable by the mechanism of thewringer to slope downwardly and away from either side of the wringer.

In accordance with another characteristic of the invention a wringingroller is associated with a feeding roller structure that is adjustablein any suitable way into co-operative relation with a wringing rollerupon either side of the wringer whereby such wringer roller and thefeeding roller structure will grip the clothes and force their 7 passageto the wringing rollers from either side of the wringer. There ispreferably mechanism governed by the actuating mechanism of the wringerfor placing the feeding roller structure into co-operative relation witha wringing roller upon either side of the wringer according to thedireetion in which the wringer is turned.

My invention also includes a drain board so interconnected with thefeeding roller structure that the adjustment of one is accompanied bythe adjustment of the other in order that the drain board will draindownwardly at that side of the wringer at which a feeding roller isco-operatively related with a wringing roller. The structure is suchthat adjustment of the feeding roller structure and the drain board maybe effected manually independently of the roller actuating mechanism andI do not wish therefore to be limited to the employment of thismechanism for that purpose.

In accordance with a further characteristic of the invention one of thewringing rollers and each feeding roller are provided with intermeshinggear wheels or pinions, some of the teeth of one of these wheels beingso mutilated that the feeding roller will be automatically moved awayfrom the wringing roller once in each revolution to widen the spacebetween these rollers to ac- "frame sidesl and 2, and

commodate clothing that is too thick to be received between the wringingand feeding rollers through the spacing that normally intervenes betweenthem. \Vhile this characteristic of my invention is embodied inconnection with each of the feeding rollers, the invention is not to belimited to the employment of two feeding rollers having suchcharacteristic.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention the two feeding rollers,where such are employed, have a common oscillating mounting which is soconnected with the drain board that such board is changed in itsinclination each time one feeding roller is substituted for the other inits relation to a wringing roller.

I also desirably provide a guard which overhangs the wringing andfeeding rollers to protect the operator who is feeding clothes into thewringer.

I will explain my invention more fully by reference to the accompanyingdrawings in which Fig. 1 is a side view of a wringer constructed inaccordance with the invention on line 1-1 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a view inelevation of the wringer; Fig. 3 is a detail View showing one wringingroller and a portion of the mechanism associated therewith that isoperated by such wringing roller to shift the feeding rollersand changethe adjustment of the drain board, this figure being taken on line 33 ofFig. 1; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a part of the structure shown inFig. 3; Fig. 5 is a view in elevation of a part of the wringer; andiFig. 6 is a view of one end of the wringer.

Like parts are indicated by similar characters of reference throughoutthe different figures.

The frame of the wringer may be made in any suitable way, the frameshown including the upright sides 1 and 2, the top rail 3 joined withthese sides by bolts 4 and the bottom bolt 5 between the bottom ends ofthe sides 1 and 2. The wringing rollers 6 and 7 have their shafts 8 and9 received in suitable bearings that are provided within the spaces 10formed in the rotat-ably mounting the wringing rollers forms no part ofmy present invention and may be such as is commonly employed, adescription thereof need not be furnished.

In accordance with common practice, the axes of the wringing rollers 6and 7 are in as the method ofto bring one the same vertical plane. Thelower roller 6 is desirably driven by power applied by hand or otherwiseto its shaft 8 and driving power is communicated fromthis shaft by meansof the gears 11 upon the shaft 8 and the gears 12 upon the shaft 9 thatmesh with the gears 11. The usual springs 13 press the top wringingroller 7 toward the lower wringing roller 6 and maintain the gears 12and 11 in mesh or restore them to meshing engagement after the upperroller has been abnormally moved away-from the lower roller. The usualthumb screws 1 1 may be employed to adjust thepressure that is furnishedby the springs 13. The shaft 8 may be turned in one direction or theother according to the direction which the clothes are fed to and are topass through the wringer. The wringing roller 7 is shown as beingassociated with two feeding rollers 15 and 16, the feeding roller 15being brought into co-operative relation with the roller? to feedclothes to the wringing rollers when the clothes are fed to the leftwhen the structure is viewed as itappears in Fig. 1, the feeding roller16 then being out of co-operative relation with the wringing roller 7.When the clothes are to be fed toward the right the feeding roller 15 isremoved from association with the wringing roller and the feeding roller16 is brought into cooperative relation with said wringing roller tofeed clothes to the wringing rollers. Both feeding rollers are desirablysupported upon a common oscillating mounting or' framework 17, thisframe being mounted to turn upon the shaft 8.- A T-shaped guard 18 hasits stem portion supported upon the u giiard overlying the top wringingroller and extending laterally thereof beyond the same so that eitherfeeding roller is covered by the guard when in co-operative relationwith the upper wringing roller.

The frame 17 is automatically oscillated by the actuating mechanism ofthe wringer feeding roller in co-operative relation with the uppermostwringing roller if the shaft 8 is turned in one direction and to bringthe other feeding roller into cooperation with preferably the samewringing roller if the rotation of the shaft 8 is reversed. Themechanism by which this result is accomplished is preferably inclusiveof an end plate 19 which is loose upon the shaft 8 but is in frictionalengagement with one end of the roller 6. This plate is formed with a lug20 that extends longitudinally of the rollers into an arcuate slot 21formed in a side of the frame 17, this slot being desirably concentricwith the shaft 8. When the rotation of the shaft 8 is reversed theroller 6 will shift the position of the end plate 19 tobring the lug 20into engagement with a new end of the slot 21 to of my invention theguides per shaft 9, the end of the top of the of the wringer towardforce a reversal in the position of the frame 17, Fig. 1 illustratingthe lug 20 upon this end plate in transition from one end of said slotto the other. To make the action more positive the plate 19 may also beprovided with a lug 22 brought between both wring ing rollers andadapted to be gripped thereby positively to force the oscillation of theframe 17. A bolt 23 is connected at its upper end with the ear 24 at thebottom of the middle portion of a side of the frame 17 In the preferredembodiment of the invention there is preferably one such bolt thusassociated at each end of the frame. Each bolt is adapted to slide atits lower end through an oscillating guide 25. A spring 26 is disposedbetween each guide 25 and the corresponding ear 24, these springsserving to snap the frame 17 and the drain board each into its finalposition each time the hinged upper ends of the bolts 23 pass the deadcenter. Said springs 26 also serve as yielding cushions which press theactive feeding roller toward the complemental wringing roller and yieldto accommodate the varying thicknesses of the clothing being passedthrough the wrmger.

In accordance with an important feature 25 form integral parts of adrain board structure 27 which is mounted mid-way between its ends uponand between the sides 1 and 2 of the wringer frame, as indicated at 28.Each time the frame 17 1s oscillated from one sideto the other theguides 25 are oscillated in a reverse direction and carry with them thebalance of the drain board structure. A leaf spring 29 is mountedbeneath the drain board and rides over the bolt 5, this spring beingshaped to hold the drain board in either of its adjustments. By theconstruction illustrated, whenever the feeding roller 15 is inco-operati've relation with the wringing roller 7 the frame slopes tothe left (Fig. 1) and the drain board slopes to the right and when thefeeding roller 16 is in co-operative relation with the wringing roller 7the frame 17 slopes to the right and the drain board slopes I to theleft. Thus water which is wrung from the clothes is drained back at thesame side which the clothes are fed. The wringer actuating mechanismthus serves to interchange the feeding rollers in their relation to thesame wringing roller and at the same time to shift the inclination ofthe drain board but I do not wish to be limited the accomplishment ofboth of these resu ts.

Each feeding roller has gears 30 and 31 which mesh with the gears 12upon the wringing roller 7. The gear wheel or pinion 31 upon eachfeeding roller has a projection indicated at.32 which, when broughtagainst the teeth of the gears 12 force separation of the active feedingroller from the complemental wringing roller to increase the spacebetween these rollers for the passage of a mass of clothes which isthicker than that adapted tothe normal space between the feeding wringerrolls. The frame pieces 33 serve as guides that are interposed betweenone wringing roller and the two feeding rollers to confine the clothesto passage between the wringing rollers. As indicated, the feedingroller which is in action is positively driven by means supplied inaddition to the wringing rollers whereby the space between the activefeeding roller and the wringing roller complemental thereto may bevaried while the feeding roller driving means is functioning. Thefeeding roller driving means desirably resides in meshing gears but isnot to be thus limited.

From the foregoing description of my 1nvention it will be observed thatI have provided a swinging mounting for the frame that carries the twofeeding rollers and mechanism for effecting the oscillating adjustmentof this frame and while this adj ustment is preferably automaticallyeffected I do not wish to be limited thereto nor to the accompanyingadjustment of the drain board. It is also apparent that I have devisedan automatic adjustment of the drain board and while such adjustment isdesirably effected concurrently with the ad ustment of the feedingrollers, I do not wish to be limited to such an arrangement. In certainaspects of my invention it is not to be limited to a feeding rollerstructure employing two feeding rollers either of which is incooperative relation with the wringing roller while the other is out ofsuch co-operative relation.

While I have herein shown and particularly described the preferredembodiment of my invention I do not wish to be limited to the precisedetails of construction shown as changes may readily be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention, but having thus described mylnvention I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent thefollowing 1. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringingrollers thereof; of two feeding rollers; andv a frame upon which saidfeeding rollers are mounted and itself adjustable to bring eitherfeeding roller into clothes gripping relation with a wringing roller andthe other feeding roller out of cooperative relation.

2. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of two feeding rollers; a frame upon which said feeding rollersare mounted and itself adjustable to bring either feeding roller intoclothes gripping relation with a wringing roller and the other feedingroller out of cooperative relation; and spring means operating upon theframe to maintain the active a wringing roller upon either side of thewringer; and Sp11I1 means ifor maintaining the feeding roller structurein adjustment.

4:. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of mechanism for operating the wringing rollers; a feedingroller structure adjustable by the wringing roller operating mechanismto be brought into clothes gripping relation with a wringing roller uponeither side of the wringer; and spring means for maintaining the feedingroller structure in adjustment. 7

5. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of mechanism for operating the wringing rollers; and a feedingroller structure adjustable by the wringing roller operating mechanismto be brought into clothes gripping relation with a wringing roller uponeither side of the wringer.

6. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof of mechanism for operating the wringing rollers; two feedingrollers; a frame upon which said feeding rollers are mounted and itselfadjustable to bring either feeding roller into clothes gripping relationwith a wringing roller and the other feeding roller out of co-operativerelation; and mechanism operated by the wringing roller operatinmechanism for adjusting the position of the feeding roller supportingframe.

7. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of mechanism for operating the wringing rollers; two feedingrollers; a frame upon which said feeding rollers are mounted and itselfadjustable to bring either feeding roller into clothes gripping relationwith a wringing roller and the other feeding roller out of co-operativerelation; spring means operating upon the frame to maintain the activefeeding roller in co-operative relation with the wringing rollercomplemental thereto; and mechanism operated by the wringing rolleroperating mechanism for adjusting the position of the feeding rollersupporting frame.

8. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of a feeding roller structure adjustable to be brought intoclothes gripping relation with a wring ing roller upon either side ofthe wringer; and a drain board movably mounted to drain at either sideof the wringer and con nected with the aforesaid feeding rollerstructure to be positioned to drain at that side of the wringer wherethe feeding roller structure is in co-operative relation with a wringingroller.

9. In a clothes wringer, the combination -with the wringing rollersthereof; of two feeding rollers on opposite sides of the wringer; aframe upon which said feeding rollers are mounted and itself adjustableto bring either feeding roller into clothes gripping relation with awringing roller and the other feeding roller out of co-operativerelation; and a drain board movably mounted to drain at either side ofthe wringer and con nected with said frame to be positioned to drain atthat side of the wringer where a feeding roller is in co-operativerelation With a wringing roller.

10. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of mechanism for operating the wringing rollers;

I two feeding rollers on opposite sides of the wringer; a frame uponwhich said feeding rollers are mounted and itself adjustable to bringeither feeding roller into clothes gripping relation with a wringingroller and the other feeding roller out of CO-OPGIHtIXB relation;mechanism operated by the wringing roller operating mechanism foradjusting the position of the feeding roller supporting frame; andadrain board movably mounted to drain at either side of the wringer andconnected with said frame to be my name this 31st day of positioned todrain at that side of the wringer where a feeding roller is inco-operative relation with a wringing roller.

11. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of a feeding roller, one of the wringing rollers and thefeeding roller having intermeshing gears, a portion of one of the gearsbeing formed with a projection to separate the rollers having the gearswhen this projection is encountered by the other gear.

12. In a clothes wringer, the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of a feeding roller in clothes gripping relation to a wringinroller and gearing upon the feeding ro ler and one of the wringingrollers for driving the feeding roller and permitting separation thereoffrom the wringing roller complemental thereto while the feeding rolleris being driven.

13. In a clothes wringer; the combination with the wringing rollersthereof; of a feeding roller in clothes gripping relation to a wringingroller; and driving means supplied in addition to the wringing rollersfor driving the feeding roller, this driving means permitting, whilefunctioning, variation in the position of the feeding roller withreference to the wringing roller complemental thereto.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe March A. D., 1921. STAF E.ANDRE.

